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This post will be reviewing the Aphrodite’s Shell Extra Dimension Bronzer from the new MAC Alluring Aquatic Collection for Summer 2014.

Unfortunately, I was only able to purchase this one product from my local MAC store because the other products I was interested in purchasing were already sold out at the time in store and online.

This collection features natural yet metallicized shades in unique metallic turquoise/aqua packaging with 3D water droplets.

Aphrodite’s Shell is described by MAC as a “golden bronze with a touch of fine shimmer”, while I would personally describe it as a light beige tan with rose gold.

I am in love with this bronzer because it give the most natural golden glow to my fair skin, while the rosey undertones give my cheeks a sun kissed flush. With that said, I would only recommend this shade to someone of fair to light skin tone for use as a brozner/blush. People with medium/deep skin tones might prefer this product used as a skin finish or even a golden highlight.

You can purchase products from this collection, including the bronzer ($33), for a limited time at MAC counters.

This is the Princess Tag, which is basically a list of your High-End favorites. I know that everyone has a different definition of high-end vs. low-end, so as a disclaimer, the majority of these products will be in the $30 and above price range. It would be easy to just pick the most expensive products that I have in each category, but these high end products are actually ones that are amazing enough to be worn by a princess.

First of all, I want to thank everyone for being patient during the brief break I took from blogging. It was much needed, but now I am ready to blog/write/swatch my little fingers off! Ha ha!

This post will be all about the brand new Covergirl Bombshell Shineshadows. They are all shimmery cream eyeshadows that can be applied sheer or completely opaque. They are extremely long-wearing, and can be used as either alone or as a primer/base. Unless you have extremely oily eyelids or will be experiencing excessive sweating, you should not need to use an additional primer under this product. These are available in 6 shades, though I will be reviewing only 5 (The white shade was sold out in my store).

Overall, I give this product *5 out of 5* stars ! They are absolutely gorgeous, blendable, stay in place, and are extremely versatile. You can purchase these at most drugstores or Ulta for around $6 or $7 dollars each.

**All of the shades are high in shimmer*

305 Color Me Money– is a cool olive green with very fine gold sparkle. This shade is not as smooth in application as some of the other shades, but can be blended and built up with a small amount of work.

315 Gold Goddess– is a yellowy gold. This is the smoothest in application and most opaque shade in the whole collection

Hey Everyone! I cant believe its already time for my annual Best of Beauty list! Picking this years winners was even harder than last year because so many new products and brands launched; but without further ado, heres the list!

If you want to see last years winners, click here: http://wp.me/p2O2wx-1t

Like I did last year, I am now going to talk about a few standout products from the list! First of all, I want to talk about Hourglass Cosmetics and why I chose them for both Best High End Brand AND Best Breakout Star. I feel like this year Hourglass came out of nowhere with amazing and innovative products. Their Ambient Lighting Powders are already a guru favorite and are quickly becoming a staple in most beauty lovers collections. I think its fair to say we have never seen something quite like these powders just based on the sheer innovation, versatility, and quality. They also have an amazing range of foundations and other products that I look forward to becoming more familiar with.

Next, the Butter London Wink Mascaras are sadly not as celebrated as I feel they should be; which is why they were almostthis years Most Underrated Product ( which ended up being the Neutrogena Crease Proof Eyeshadows because they are literally the easiest and quickest cream eyeshadow to use, and I have never heard anyone talk about them)….back to the Wink Mascara….Not only does this mascara has a great wand and color range, but the colors are insanely gorgeous AND pigmented. With only two coats I can get a fully opaque purple lash.

Finally, I want to discuss the Best Foundations of the year. The Best High End Foundation, CK One 3-in-1 Face Makeup (another breakout star), is the best of the year because it has one of the most natural finishes I’ve ever seen as well as feeling like there is nothing on the skin. It has an SPF of 8, a light pleasant scent, and keeps the skin healthy and clear. As for the Best Drugstore Foundation, I chose the Covergirl Clean Whipped Creme because it is extremely blendable and full coverage, which means it never looks cakey.

I hope you enjoyed this post! And make sure to let me know your favorites for the year !!!!!

Hey Everyone! It’s time again to talk about what came in this months Ipsy Bag!

Big Sexy Hair ‘Weather Proof’ : is a humidity resistant spray that you apply to a finished look to resist humidity and frizz, as well as keep your hair in place (like a hairspray). It smells like a cross between generic hairspray and dental fluoride.

BH Cosmetics ‘California Collection’ Palette : is an eyeshadow trio including the shades ‘Hollywood’, ‘San Francisco’, and ‘Malibu’. ‘Hollywood’ is a deep bright purple, ‘San Francisco’ is a medium sandy brown with gold glitter, and ‘Malibu’ is bright yellow gold. All of these shades are very sheer and blend decently. Unfortunately ‘Hollywood’ is the most poorly pigmented, and ‘San Francisco’ can get a bit muddy. ‘Malibu’ is very similar to Urban Decay’s ‘Half Baked’, but is much more yellow toned.

Coola Mineral Sunscreen : is an organic tinted moisturizer with spf 20. It’s color is that of a light warm bisque, I have “MAC NC20” skin and it gives me a warm glow without getting too orange. It has a very light liquidy consistency, and light but buildable coverage. This product is also green friendly, recycle friendly, and cruelty free.

Pop Beauty ‘Pouty Pop Crayon’ in Fuchsia Flirt : is a twist-up tinted lip balm crayon. ‘Fuchsia Flirt’ is a neutral flamingo pink, and contrary to the name I would not describe this color as fuchsia.

Demeter Roll On Perfume Oil in Salt Air : is an oil based roll on perfume. I got one of these in a previous Ipsy Bag and liked the scent, but unfortunately these are very light, hardly noticeable fragrances and do not last more than a few minutes once applied. ‘Salt Air’ has notes of white sand, ocean salt, and slight mandarin. Although, I love Bobbi Brown ‘Beach’ which has similar notes, I do not care for this fragrance.

Hey Guys! Its finally summertime so obviously you’ll be spending a lot more of your days in the sun, by the pool, at the beach, etc. And since your daily routine is changing, so should your beauty routine! Here are some products that I love for creating quick, easy, and long-wearing summer beauty looks.

A great moisturizer and sunscreen are both extra important when your skin will be exposed to direct sunlight. But since I don’t like to layer a ton of products on my face, especially when it is hot, its extra convenient to have both things in one product. For this I like to use the Juice Beauty Green Apple SPF 15 Moisturizer, which is organic and contains anti aging antioxidants; plus it smells great! If you feel like you need more spf protection, but don’t want to use a higher spf sunscreen from the drugstore that might cause issues for your skin, I would invest in the DiorSnow UV Sheild SPF 50.

For summer face makeup, I like to use products that will give me a flawless face that lasts without looking or feeling like a have a lot of makeup on. This may sound like a tall order, but using a medium to full coverage foundation that can be sheered out, I like NARS Sheer Glow Foundation, is probably your best bet. This can be done by mixing together your foundation and moisturizer, or by using a dampened beauty blender sponge to apply a sheer layer all over your face and adding more only where you need. (Beauty Smarties : I know what you’re thinking. A medium to full coverage foundation is recommended, but the title of the recommended foundation is Nars SHEER glow. Yes. That is contradicting, but even though Nars markets this foundation as sheer, which it can be when applied with a light hand or a damp sponge, it is actually more of a medium coverage foundation when applied “normally”, and can be built up to a full coverage. Its versatility is what makes it so popular! )

The Josie Maran Argan Illuminizer is a cream/gel golden highlighter infused with argan oil. Its great summer staple because you can use it just about any way you could ever want or need. Here are just a few ways it can be applied :

Under or mixed in with foundation

As a highlighter for cheekbones

As a highlighter for the entire body

As a cream eyeshadow

For cheeks, long-wearing cream products are the way to go! I like the Sonia Kashuk Undetectable Cream Bronzer which is a sheer light tan bronzer with a slight gold sheen. Its doesn’t get muddy or orange, and blends very well. I also like the Sonia Kashuk Super Sheer Liquid Tint in Peony because it looks very natural and mimics a slight sunburn while still looking like a natural pretty glow from within. I like to apply both of these products with a kabuki foundation brush.

Just like cheeks, long-wearing eye products are great for summer. The Maybelline Color Tattoos are great cream eyeshadows that can be used as a base or alone. I especially like the shade Bold Gold for this time of year. I also love the Tarte emphasEYES eyeliner, especially the shade Bronze, because they are made with amazonian clay and are waterproof. You don’t have to use a waterproof mascara if you’re not planning on swimming, but a great mascara that you trust not to smudge is essential for the hotter months; I like the Lancome Hypnose Doll Lashes Mascara.

TIP : If you’re fair skinned like me, the Chella Ivory Lace Highlighter Crayon is an amazing product to cover discoloration as well as brighten. On my more natural days, I like to apply this to my entire eye area ( lid, brow bone, inner corner, and under eye area ). If you have darker skin, let me know if you have found a product like this!!!!

Summer is one of the most important times to protect your lips because they will be facing sun exposure a lot more than any other time of year. Unless you want dry, cracked, and sunburned lips, make sure you keep them moisturized and protected. Here are some options :

Fresh Sugar Rose Tinted Lip Treatment is great because it is smoothing, non-sticky, gives your lips a sheer wash of red, AND protects your lips with SPF 15.

Nivea Lip Butters are ultra luxurious and moisturizing. I like the Raspberry Rose Kiss flavor because it gives my lips a soft pink highlight, and smells like raspberry shortcake!

MAC Plush Glasses dont offer much moisture or protection, but they are super sheer and long wearing which makes them great when you want just a little something extra to enhance your natural summer beauty. The shade Fullfilled is an awesome summer nude.

Hey Everyone! Since you all seemed to love my post on the Best Blushes for Fair Skin : http://wp.me/p2O2wx-7P , I thought I would make a little series of similar posts. This one, as you can probably tell from the title, is about eyeshadows that I think look especially great on those of us with fair skin. Like I said before, fair skinned people can get away with wearing ANY color because we are such a “blank canvas”; but these are the shades that I find are the most universally flattering regardless of skin type/undertone/etc.

Bobbi Brown Candlelight / MAC Ricepaper : These are both great brightening lid colors. Candlelight is more champagne colored, and Ricepaper is more yellow.

Bobbi Brown Bone / MAC Brule : These are both almost invisible flesh tones. Bone is slightly more pigmented.

Urban Decay Tease / MAC Haux : These are both great mauve/brown colors that look amazing in the crease. Tease is moderately more purple.

Urban Decay Naked / Bobbi Brown Wheat / MAC Wedge : These are all neutral medium/light browns that are great for crease and blending. Naked is the most neutral, Wheat is cooler, and Wedge is warmer.

MAC Folie / Urban Decay Buck / NYX Dance The Tides : These are all warm medium browns. Folie is a reddened brown, Buck is a tan brown, and Dance the Tides has a warm copper/orange tint.

MAC Cork : is a unique warm medium brown thats great for the crease and brows.

MAC Shale : is a sheer muted cool purple. I think it is one of the most underrated MAC eyeshadows, I love it!

MAC Naked Lunch : looks much better on pale skin than All That Glitters. It is basically the same peachy pink color, just taken down a few notches.

Urban Decay Darkhorse : is a warm charcoal that isn’t too cool or dark; which makes it a GREAT option for fair skin because it isn’t overpowering.

Urban Decay Toasted / MAC Sable : These are both warm pink/browns. Toasted is slightly pinker, and Sable is slightly more red toned.

MAC Big Bounce Shadow in Count Your Assets : is a a bright cool purple. Its great as a base or on its own. Although this product is discontinued, you can look for something similar. This is just what I have.

Maybelline Color Tattoo in Blue Paradise : is a great color for pale people to rock, as most people can’t! It is a medium blue base with purple duochrome.

MAC Paint Pot in Morning Frost : is a slightly cool taupe/brown. This was limited edition, but again, you can easily find something similar.